Father's Day Deadly Gift
On Father's Day, I received a heartwarming gift.
My one-year-old son called me Dad for the first time. But moments later, he convulsed, foamed at the mouth, and died before we could reach the hospital.
My wife was shattered, and I was devastated. The doctors couldn't identify the cause of his death.
Three years later, my wife emerged from her grief, and we welcomed our second child. But the moment this child called me Dad, they, too, died instantly.
To spare her further pain, I suggested adoption. Yet, even our adopted children met the same fate. Unable to bear the losses, my wife divorced me.
Everyone said I was cursed, never meant to be a father.
Defiant, I remarried and had another child, vowing never to let them call me Dad. For years, we adhered to this rule.
But when our daughter turned four, she came home from preschool, eager to celebrate Father's Day. Holding a card, she read aloud, "Dad."